STAUNTON, VIRGINIA—The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum announced today that it will host its annual Woodrow Wilson Birthday Open House on Tuesday, December 28th, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. This year’s event will be the first to include the World War I trench exhibit. As always, President Wilson’s Birthplace, decorated for the holidays in Victorian-era style, and the Woodrow Wilson Museum will be open for visitors at no charge. There will be children’s activities, period music, pizza, birthday cake, and other refreshments. All non-sale items except books in the President’s Shop will be offered at a 10% discount. The Open House is sponsored in part by Shenandoah Pizza, Country Confections, and Mugshots.

Don W. Wilson, President and CEO of the WWPL, said, “December 28th is one of our favorite days of the year at the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum, as we celebrate the birth of President Wilson with an event open to the entire community free of charge.”

Guests can celebrate President Wilson’s birthday all day with activities for the entire family, including making Victorian Christmas crackers and exploring the Museum and the Manse with costumed interpreters. Guests of all ages can enjoy birthday cake donated by Country Confections, pizza donated and served by Shenandoah Pizza from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and other refreshments, including coffee donated by Mugshots. At 10:30 a.m. in the Museum, local musician Bill Harouff will sing “Christmas in the Trenches,” a song written by John McCutcheon about the Christmas, 1914, unofficial ceasefires on the World War I Western Front. Professional storyteller Susan Clark will enchant children with stories of Christmas past at 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Local musicians Jim Harrington and Buddy Thomas will play acoustic period music in the Manse from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Members of the Pierce-Arrow Committee will provide information about President Wilson’s 1919 Pierce-Arrow limousine, and staff will be available to give tours of the newly renovated Library and Research Center.

The Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum is open 360 days a year for guests from around the world to tour the President’s Birthplace, the historic gardens, and the Woodrow Wilson Museum, including the President’s 1919 Pierce-Arrow limousine. The Presidential Library also sponsors educational programming for thousands of schoolchildren each year and hosts teachers’ institutes, a variety of other educational symposia, and a speakers’ series. The Presidential Library has a large collection of Wilson and Wilson-era documents, many of which can be accessed on the on-line digital archive, the Wilson e-Library. The Presidential Library recently purchased an historic home next to the Museum and is in the process of turning the building into the Foundation’s Library and Research Center.

Anyone interested in more information about the Open House should contact Cynthia Polhill at the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum at (540) 885-0897, ext. 100, or cpolhill@woodrowwilson.org.

Sections

did you know?

Wilson was president throughout World War I. He attempted to keep America out of the war and even won reelection with the slogan "He kept us out of war." Nonetheless, after the sinking of the Lusitania, continued run-ins with German submarines, and the release of the Zimmerman Telegram, America became involved. with the Lusitania, the continued harassment of American ships by German submarines, and the release of the Zimmerman Telegram meant that America joined the allies in April, 1917.

Woodrow Wilson was President when the 19th amendment was ratified in 1920 giving women the right to vote.

Wilson piloted the ship that brought America onto the world stage. He made the first steps of leading us out of isolationism, violating Washington's tenet of avoiding foreign entanglements.

He led America during World War I. His fervent hope was for the US to join a League of Nations, the precursor to the United Nations.

A Woodrow Wilson Quote: "Life does not consist in thinking, it consists in acting."

A Woodrow Wilson Quote: "The Constitution was not made to fit us like a straitjacket. In its elasticity lies its chief greatness."

A Woodrow Wilson Quote: "I believe in democracy because it releases the energies of every human being."

The Seventeenth Amendment was formally adopted on May 31, 1913. Wilson had been president for almost three months at the time. The amendment provided for the direct election of senators. Prior to its adoption, Senators were chosen by state legislatures.

Wilson was the first president to receive a PhD which he got in Political Science from Johns Hopkins University. He had received his undergraduate degree from the College of New Jersey, renamed Princeton University in 1896.

Woodrow Wilson could not read during the first decade of his life. Though undiagnosed, he may have suffered from a learning disability

Woodrow Wilson was known as "Tommy" until his college years.

Woodrow Wilson during his boyhood, helped establish the "Lightfoot Baseball Club" with his friends. Wilson played second base and was an avid sport fan throughout his adult life.

Woodrow Wilson was the first president to attend the Major League Baseball Fall Classic. He saw the debut of a young 20 year old pitcher by the name of George Herman "Babe" Ruth.

Woodrow Wilson was a graduate of Princeton University and Johns Hopkins University and the only president to hold an earned doctoral degree.

Woodrow Wilson image is on the $100,000 bill although it is no longer in circulation